Rising High: Exclusive talk with house of brands Carma HoldCo

In this edition of “Rising High,” The Fly conducted an exclusive interview with Adam Wilks, Co-Founder and CEO of Carma HoldCo, a house of brands focused on creating icon-inspired cannabis products. Here are some highlights:

QUALITY PRODUCT: Carma HoldCo is a cannabis company that aims to develop products evoking deep consumer connection and elevated experiences. The company houses TYSON 2.0, the premium cannabis brand of legendary boxer Mike Tyson, as well as Ric Flair Drip and Wooooo! Energy, the cannabis and energy drink lines of renowned pro-wrestler Ric Flair, and Evol, a cannabis brand by four-time Grammy Award-winning artist Future. “Carma differentiates itself by focusing heavily on quality first,” Wilks said. “Every market we go to, we dive in, spend our time and do our due diligence on the quality of product we’re putting out. We’re always innovating new products and categories.”

He added Carma is also concentrated on being first to new territories around the world. “Being able to say we are the first to bring plant-based medicine under a U.S.-based brand to markets like Germany and the UK, and continuing into Australia and several new countries, is significant,” the CEO said. “We continue to develop our diverse portfolio of brands to cater to different consumer preferences around the world. We always look to bring something for everyone.”

PARTNERSHIPS: In October, TYSON 2.0 announced its further expansion in California in partnership with LYT Holdings. TYSON 2.0 will leverage LYT’s production and distribution network to broaden access to new and existing product lines including pre-rolls, vapes and gummies. “We were heavily focused on flower in California for the last few years, focused on quality first and looking at the best of the best,” Wilks said. “To expand our presence and our footprint in the state, we partnered with LYT so we could bring manufactured goods to the market inclusive of infused pre-rolls, vapes and expanding on the Mike Bites and the edible line that we have.”

He noted LYT specializes in vapes, which has allowed the companies to collaborate on new unique offerings. “We came out with a vape device and we call it the Pocket Pigeon, playing off of Mike’s relationship with the pigeons,” the CEO said. “It’s a 0.15 gram disposable vape, so it’s extremely small. The reason for that is one, it is cool and its different than what everybody else is putting out there and two, it gives the consumer a fresh taste straight through from start to finish.”

When reaching the bottom of a larger vape, users can often experience a burning taste due to the coils having burned for so long, he said. “We created this cost-effective solution,” Wilks said. “They’re really inexpensive, small, discrete and again with such a small dosage, you have that delicious, flavorful taste straight through. We are heavily focused on innovation and new products for the market so we couldn’t be happier with that partnership.”

Additionally in October, Carma announced the launch of Ric Flair Drip cannabis products in Washington state, in partnership with Sungrown. The collaboration brings the Nature Boy’s signature line of cannabis vapes and infused pre-rolls to consumers in the state. “Part of our model is bringing our brands to everybody everywhere, so the partnership with Sungrown just opens up more doors for us across Washington state,” the CEO said. “It expands our brand market presence and we’re focusing this partnership specifically on manufactured goods.”

Through the partnership, Ric Flair Drip is debuting the “Flair Force One” vape device in Washington, he said. “Ric being a bright, colorful and exciting guy, we are playing off of that with some of these new, exciting products and bringing them to consumers across the state,” Wilks said.

Also in October, Carma formed an exclusive partnership with NextGen, which will bring TYSON 2.0 to dispensaries across Puerto Rico. “We are tapping into our global expansion, adding new markets all over the place and bringing TYSON 2.0 plant-based medicine to people all over the world,” the CEO said. “That partnership came together with NextGen and we settled on NextGen because of their experience, quality of flower and their reach. They have a substantial reach across the island and it’s been a great partnership so far. Ric Flair, as well, will be rolling out with them and we are actually taking Ric out there in the near-term.”

MR. CHARLIE’S INVESTMENT: Carma announced a strategic investment in Mr. Charlie’s Told Me So in October. Mr. Charlie’s is a bold, plant-based quick-service restaurant that has garnered attention for its unique take on fast food and commitment to providing second chances for those in need. This investment will fuel Mr. Charlie’s expansion plans, offering franchisees an opportunity to join the rapidly growing plant-based movement. “We look at Carma Holdco as a celebrity brand house,” Wilks said. “We use our celebrities to put them behind products that they stand by and that we can legitimately say is authentic to the talent as we have with Mike. We have developed TYSON 2.0 to such a massive company globally, active in 19 countries because of his authenticity to the brand. Now Mike was a vegan for many, many years and does not include meat in his daily diet, so this was a perfect fit for him.”

Investing in Mr. Charlie’s also hit home for Wilks, he said, as he spent a decade in the QSR industry focused on scaling different fast-food brands. “It was something that I saw and I knew what we could do with it,” the CEO said. “What intrigued us and excited us was the scalability, the ability to scale this on a global level like TYSON 2.0. Mike has his connection to the vegan world and the food is unbelievable, it’s crave-worthy, the menu offerings are innovative and Mr. Charlie’s has a bold brand identity.”

He added not only does he love the food, but he took his children and they were “over the top” happy. “My kids are pickier eaters than most others that I know, and they fell in love with it,” Wilks said. “They didn’t know it was vegan, I didn’t tell them ahead of time and they devoured multiple meals with me from the nuggets to the burgers. That was a home run for me.”

Mr. Charlie’s is also committed to providing second chances to employees from underprivileged backgrounds, a philosophy which deeply resonates with Mike and TYSON 2.0, he said. “We have our 2.0 blog that is focused on second chances and the model behind Mr. Charlie’s when they started was hiring from the Dream Center,” the CEO said. “They help the community and connect incarcerated people, homeless individuals, recovering addicts with opportunities to work and a second chance. All of that, the connection, the story, the energy, connects to Mike himself and a lot of what Carma is about, which is giving back. We felt it was a perfect fit.”

SCHEDULING: In August, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced that it would be holding a hearing on December 2 on the proposal to reclassify cannabis as lower-risk and reschedule the drug from Schedule I to Schedule III. “The DEA hearing obviously reflects a huge step for potential regulatory reform,” Wilks said. “That will lead to great acceptance by all and the whole cannabis industry will see extreme market growth. If cannabis can be rescheduled, it opens up so many opportunities for everybody. I see not only Carma’s brands but everybody having this massive growth and some of the stigma dropping around cannabis.”

He noted there are still a lot of unknowns currently, but he believes the industry is headed in the right direction. “Both parties have expressed their focus and interest in supporting the cannabis initiative and moving this all forward,” the CEO said. “I am extremely optimistic about what’s next with the DEA, with post-election and movement on SAFER Banking. I feel we are right at that edge of a lot of progress for the industry as a whole and I couldn’t be more excited.”

SAFER BANKING: In September 2023, a U.S. Senate committee voted to advance The Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation Banking Act bill, which seeks to ensure that all businesses, including cannabis businesses, have access to deposit accounts, insurance and other financial services. “There definitely has been a lack of movement on SAFER Banking, which suggests that there are ongoing challenges in gaining support,” the CEO said. “I remain optimistic as this is crucial for our industry and the financial stability of the cannabis space. Wall Street has not touched cannabis and there are a lot of these little pieces that need to come together for those floodgates to open. I think the banking act is a huge part of that. It’s a must, it’s a need and it’s not an if, it’s a when.”

STATE BALLOT INITIATIVES: Amid the election, voters in Florida decided to reject a ballot measure that would approve recreational cannabis use. “The failure of Amendment 3 in Florida is a major setback for what could have been a transformative shift in the cannabis industry,” Wilks said. “While Carma remains committed to advancing the normalization and integration of cannabis into mainstream commerce and society, the failure to pass adult-use legalization in Florida slows the momentum toward a broader, more inclusive market.”

Additionally in the election, North Dakota and South Dakota voted against measures to legalize adult-use cannabis, while Nebraska voted for the legalization of medical cannabis. “It’s 2024 and I find it crazy that we’re still saying any of this,” he said. “Cannabis should be nationwide and it should be federally approved. It boggles my mind that these conversations are still being had and that there are people still sitting in jail for cannabis in many states in the U.S. I’m pro-adult use for everywhere across the nation and I think this should be moving a lot faster than it does.”

PRODUCT CATEGORIES: According to cannabis research firms, flower still holds the biggest share of sales of any cannabis product category, followed by vape. “We continue to see a heavy shift,” Wilks said. “Flower definitely still dominates, but we’ve seen a huge increase in infused pre-rolls and our edibles with our world-famous Mike Bites, and the more discrete consumption options like vapes are booming. I think beverages will also continue to grow. It’s a very small portion of the market right now, but as first-time users come in, they might feel more comfortable using something that has been more commonly used in the commercial industry. With all your long-time cannabis users, I don’t see them ever going away from flower.”

CHALLENGES: When asked about the largest hurdles facing the cannabis space, the CEO pointed to regulatory uncertainty and the ongoing stigma around cannabis use. “We need clarity on the regulation that we have been talking about,” he said. “SAFER Banking is a huge one and we are seeing it with the financial stability of the whole industry. You look at the failing dispensaries and cultivators all over the country and at what is available, it’s never been so high and there are people that just can’t survive. DEA approval, the election, SAFER Banking, all of that will play a huge part in getting us some clarity on where this stands and where we are going, which I’m extremely optimistic about.”

Wilks added it is also insane that there is still a stigma around cannabis in 2024. “We are so far beyond that with the technology and testing behind it, it’s crazy that we are still talking about some of these challenges that the industry has to go through.”

OPPORTUNITIES: As the cannabis space develops, the CEO said the biggest opportunities for Carma are around expansion into new markets across the globe. “I just finished a multi-country tour of five different countries in September and it was super refreshing to see how many new markets are coming online and how integrated into the space they have all become,” he said. “I have been to Germany for the last four or five years and every year, watching them progress and seeing how far along they come is so refreshing. It’s amazing to see the world finally coming online for the cannabis space. There are just so many opportunities out there as Carma stays ahead of it by being in the first stage of the markets. We couldn’t be more excited to be coming to every country around the world with TYSON 2.0, Ric Flair, EVOL by Future and really making Mike’s wish and dream come true by bringing plant-based medicine to everybody all over the world.”

CANNABIS/PSYCHEDELIC STOCKS: Publicly-traded companies in the space include Acreage (ACRHF), Ascend Wellness (AAWH), Atai Life Sciences (ATAI), Aurora Cannabis (ACB), Avant Brands (AVTBF), Ayr Wellness (AYRWF), The Cannabist Company (CBSTF), Cannara Biotech (LOVFF), Canopy Growth (CGC), Cansortium (CNTMF), Chicago Atlantic (REFI), Clearmind (CMND), Clever Leaves (CLVR), Compass Pathways (CMPS), CordovaCann (LVRLF), Cresco Labs (CRLBF), Cronos Group (CRON), Curaleaf (CURLF), CV Sciences (CVSI), Cybin (CYBN), Entourage Health (ETRGF), Enveric Biosciences (ENVB), Flora Growth (FLGC), Trees Corporation (CANN), Greenlane (GNLN), Green Thumb (GTBIF), GrowGeneration (GRWG), Hemp (HEMP), Heritage Cannabis (HERTF), High Tide (HITI), IGC Pharma (IGC), IM Cannabis (IMCC), Innovative Industrial Properties (IIPR), InterCure (INCR), Ispire Technology (ISPR), Lowell Farms (LOWLF), Lucy Scientific Discovery (LSDI), MediPharm (MEDIF), MindMed (MNMD), NewLake Capital (NLCP), Numinus (NUMIF), Optimi Health (OPTHF), Organigram (OGI), PharmAla (MDXXF), Planet 13 (PLNHF), Psyence Biomedical (PBM), Red White & Bloom (RWBYF), Relmada Therapeutics (RLMD), Reunion Neuroscience (REUN), RIV Capital (CNPOF), Safe Harbor Financial (SHFS), SNDL (SNDL), Skye Bioscience (SKYE), Stem Holdings (STMH), TerrAscend (TRSSF), Tilray (TLRY), Trulieve (TCNNF), Tryp Therapeutics (TRYPF), Verano (VRNOF), Village Farms (VFF), Vireo Health (VREOF) and 4Front Ventures (FFNTF).